


Hide the Truth

by Impala_Cherry_Trickster



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Abusive John Winchester, Alternate Universe, Awesome Charlie, Eventual Smut, Fluff and Angst, Gabriel Has a Crush on Sam Winchester, Hurt Sam Winchester, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, John Winchester's A+ Parenting, M/M, Nightmares, Police Officer Dean Winchester, Protective Dean Winchester, Sam Winchester Has PTSD - Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Secrets
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-25
Updated: 2019-05-13
Packaged: 2020-01-31 19:09:54
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 17,732
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18597607
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Impala_Cherry_Trickster/pseuds/Impala_Cherry_Trickster
Summary: Moving to a new town, Dean Winchester joins the police force under Sheriff Bobby Singer. Dean is hoping that the move will help his brother, Sam, who hasn't left the house since their father kidnapped him. Is the new house a good thing, or is it going to drive the brothers apart?





	1. The New Neighbours

**Author's Note:**

> In case you can't tell by my other works, Sabriel and Destiel are my main ships. I don't dislike John's character, he just works well for writing about as a mean character. Enjoy!

Gabriel was never one for sitting still. His entire life had to be filled with excitement, it was part of what made him so good with the customers. Owning a Candy Store was his idea of heaven, it really did give him something to work for. Castiel, his younger brother, could never understand his obsession with sugary items. But, sadly, while children were at school, Gabriel had very little to do. His current objective was to spend a day in the family house without being driven insane by his crazy siblings. There were too many of them living in this household, it always caused issues. Gabriel was stuck somewhere in the middle of his siblings, although Raphael had moved away, leaving him third eldest. His brothers Michael and Lucifer weren’t exactly the most responsible people in the world, but then again, Gabriel wasn’t either.

As the third oldest sibling in the household, he had enough standing to shotgun the nicest chair in the household. The window-seat, it overlooked the front yard, down to the road, and the house opposite. It was currently his form of entertainment, because today, new neighbours were moving in. The road was pretty empty, the Novak household was the biggest house on the street, with only five others before you reached town. The house opposite was the closest, and therefore the people moving in were interesting to Gabriel. Apparently, the Novak’s all thought the same, because Cassie was already lifting up Gabriel’s legs to sit down. The elder glared slightly, but he was fond of his brother, so he didn’t say anything.

Lucifer hit Gabriel over the head as he leaned over, watching the current entertainment. Gabriel went to protest, but stopped when he spotted Michael walking across as well. The two together were slightly more manageable, so he shuffled closer to his younger brother to make room.

‘Neighbours?’ Lucifer asked, looking intrigued. Gabriel nodded, watching as the men from the truck started lifting furniture into the house. More people entered the top floor living-room, the four brothers turning to see their father and remaining siblings.

‘I suppose you have heard about the people moving in?’ Chuck was a nice guy, for an adoptive father. The Novak’s were lucky to have him, he had brought a bunch of misfits together, slapped a surname on them and given them a huge home, and money. Chuck looked over each of them, Gabriel giving his best cocky grin when the gaze landed on him. His father gave a fond smile, before looking back to Michael, the eldest.

‘Yes, do you know who they are?’

‘And if they’re hot?’ Gabriel supplied, looking back towards the house. Castiel sighed, nudging his brother as if to scold him, but Chuck just laughed.

‘Apparently they’re the new Sheriff’s boys. Not by blood, but as good as. The elder one is a cop, so play nicely Gabriel.’ Gabriel thought about this new information.  The new Sheriff had arrived last week, a nice man called Bobby Singer, who had moved with his wife Ellen and her daughter Jo. They had a nice house up in the town, which made sense. And now there were two more of the little clan, presumably brothers, of which one was a cop.

‘Speaking of.’ Lucifer nodded to the window, gesturing to the Sheriff’s pickup truck that had pulled up outside the house. Bobby looked to the new house, before crossing the street.

‘Wait here kids.’ Chuck vanished, leaving Gabriel’s three other siblings, Anna, Balthazar and Hester. Castiel was still the youngest, but against these three, he usually held his own. The siblings all crowded closer, watching as their father walked down the pathway and met the Sheriff. They shook hands, before they begun talking. They watched the Sheriff’s face fall, and Gabriel knew that he was telling his father something important. Chuck appeared to reassure the man, before turning back towards the house. They didn’t have to wait long, the first thing he did was come and find them.

‘What did he tell you?’ Lucifer was just as inquisitive as Gabriel was, annoyingly, but it didn’t matter in this moment. Chuck paused, looking back out of the window.

‘They’re called the Winchesters. The eldest, Dean, is to be the new Deputy here. The younger one, Sam, doesn’t leave the house apparently. An incident, of sorts.’ His father didn’t know anything else, otherwise he would have told them, which just made Gabriel even more curious. Lucifer and Michael appeared to be along the same wavelength as he was, all of them turning back to the window.

It didn’t take long for something interesting to happen. A sleek, 67 Chevy Impala pulled up onto the driveway, a man climbing out of the car and looking around. Bobby walked across, pulling the guy into a hug. Gabriel sighed, although this man, Dean he presumed, was good looking, he wasn’t his type. Gabriel shot a look to Cassie, knowing that the Cop would tick all his boxes. Sure enough, when Cassie caught his gaze his cheeks flared red, looking back to the window. Gabriel smirked, although didn’t say anything as they went back to watching. The Sheriff was gesturing to the house, speaking enthusiastically while Dean just laughed, nodding his head to the guy.

The Novak siblings were crammed against the window, all watching as the guy went to the trunk, pulling out a large brown box and disappearing into the house. Bobby remained outside, talking to the men still unloading furniture and boxes, happily chatting along.

‘Dean’s pretty good looking.’ Michael commented, but it was aimed at Castiel. Michael wasn’t interested in guys, in fact, the only competition that Cassie might have was Balthazar. Lucifer had never shown interest in anyone, unless it was to make fun of them, so he wouldn’t be interested. Anna and Hester were both gay, leaving them out of the equation. Balthazar didn’t seem to be bothered by the Cop, but Castiel still refused to look at anyone.

‘Mm would you look at that.’ Gabriel remarked, watching a red-headed girl step out of the passenger side of the Impala. She was pulled in for a hug by Bobby, before she looked back to the Impala.

‘Who is she?’ Anna commented, watching the red-head with interest. Hester had a girlfriend, so it left the younger sister to flirt with the new girl.

‘Her name is Charlie, kind of an adopted sister to the brothers. Apparently she helps with Sam’s… condition.’ Chuck remarked, watching the scene as well. Dean returned from the depths of the house, grinning to Charlie who offered him a high-five. The two seemed buzzed, watching as the removal van pulled away before Dean opened the back of the Impala. The Novak’s watched with curiosity as someone else stepped out of the car. Gabriel knew, even from here, that the guy was stunning. Tall, slightly long hair that framed his face, although the kid was trying his very best to make himself seem small.

The kid didn’t hesitate to walk from the car to the building, not looking around once as he disappeared into the house. Charlie rubbed Dean’s shoulder, before grabbing her rucksack from the floor and following him into the house. The Sheriff gave one last look to Dean, before walking back to his truck, leaving the Novak’s to watch as the last source of entertainment vanished.


	2. Baby Brother

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean is settling into his new life, and decides to meet the neighbours

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, please leave kudos and comments if you enjoy, it makes my day!

Dean liked it here. He was happy to be a Deputy, it was his fourth day at the station, most of the village seemed to stop by and say hello. He was more than friendly, smiling and making conversation with the locals, answering questions about where he had come from. The one subject that always came up was his brother, people were curious about Sammy. Dean was walking home, knowing that he would open the front door and be hit by the scent of whatever delicious food Sam had made for him and Charlie. This was their fresh start, a chance to put behind the incident that had happened four years ago.

Dean blamed himself. As a cop, he should have been able to notice that something was off with his father’s behaviour towards Sam. Then one day, the two had gone missing. Nobody had seen them for four months, and by the time they found Sam, he was wrecked. Dean didn’t know what happened, only Bobby did, and try as he might to get Sammy to talk, his little brother wouldn’t speak of it. It was four years later, and Sam still didn’t leave the house. Inside, he remained the exact same person he had been before the attack, comfortable with him, Charlie and Bobby. But if someone mentioned it, or he had to meet new people, it was like every ounce of progress they made shattered.

He paused at the pathway to his front door, looking across to the other residence. The Novak household, a man called Chuck with eight children, all adopted. Only seven lived there, although they were pretty old to all be living in a house together. He had yet to meet them, which may appear rude to them. He decided the best thing to do was to ask Charlie if she would like to come over with him to meet the new neighbours.

Sam was in the kitchen, grinning when he saw Dean. His brother looked happy, even as he danced around the kitchen preparing food. Sam worked for a big marketing company, work that he could do at home from his laptop. It was funny, considering he earned more than Charlie and Dean combined, but Dean didn’t care.

‘Evening, Bitch.’ Dean commented, slumping down onto the kitchen chair as Sam chucked him a beer.

‘Jerk.’ He replied, before going back to stirring what appeared to be pasta. Charlie entered the room, a smirk on her face as she gestured to the pie dishes on the table.

‘Sam thought it would be a good idea for us to go and take these across to our neighbours.’ Of course Sammy would think of that before he did. Dean looked to his brother, who gave him a dismissive nod, before Dean picked up one of the pies and looked to Charlie. She scooped up the other, patting Sam’s shoulder as they walked across towards the door.

‘Better be Pie left for me.’ Dean commented, trying to avoid the awkwardness of having to leave Sam alone in the house. His sibling insisted he didn’t mind, that he quite enjoyed the peacefulness, although Dean knew that Sam just spent the time wallowing in his own thoughts.

‘Better be back for dinner then, you’ve got twenty minutes.’ Dean chuckled as he shut the door behind them, walking across the street to the Novak house. It was a huge house, quite intimidating if you thought about it, but it didn’t stop Charlie from ringing the bell. It was opened by a girl, who quickly smiled when she saw us.

‘You must be Charlie and Dean! Oh, come on in! My name is Hester.’ She opened the door wide, beckoning for us to come in. I wasn’t surprised that they knew our names, nor was I surprised by the size of the inside of the house. She led us through to a living room, where quite a few people sat. I already knew it would be difficult to remember all of these people.

‘Guys, Dean and Charlie brought Pie!’ Hester called, a man that was presumably Chuck standing up to greet them.

‘It’s nice to meet you both, I’m Chuck, the leader of this rabble. I’ll let them introduce themselves.’ Dean was happy when Hester took the pie away from him, so he could shake Chuck’s hand. The only other female in the room walked across, her eyes focused on Charlie as she introduced herself.

‘Anna, nice to meet you.’ Dean smirked, watching Charlie’s eyes widen as she spoke with the girl. Good, it was about time Charlie found someone. A shorter-looking guy with dark caramel hair stood, or more like bounced up, grinning.

‘I’m Gabriel, this is Michael, Lucifer, Balthazar and finally, Castiel.’ He nudged forwards the guy called Castiel, who looked up in his direction. Stunningly blue eyes met his, a small smile forming on his face.

‘The names will come with practice.’ He remarked, watching as Gabriel bounded across to Charlie like an excited puppy. Castiel gestured to the seat, and Dean took the cue to slide beside him. The guy was cute, although Dean was pretty sure it was a bad idea to admit that.

‘I’ll say, I thought I was good with remembering faces. Is your brother always this…’ Dean trailed off as he watched Gabriel flirt excellently with Charlie.

‘Forward? Don’t worry, he knows she is gay. He just likes to make an impression.’ That was certainly what he was doing right now, Charlie was practically doubled over with laughter.

‘Seems like a mixture of characters.’ He commented, watching Castiel nod. Charlie was led by Gabriel to a chair, while Chuck handed them both a beer. They all settled, discussing normal topics such as Dean’s new job, Charlie working part-time at the coffee shop in town, the Candy Store Gabriel seemed to be in love with. Fifteen minutes of easy conversation, before they excused themselves and headed to the door.

‘It was lovely to meet you, perhaps you would like to come for dinner some time?’ Chuck asked, although you could tell he was hesitant about the question. Dean paused, knowing his brother would never agree to leaving the house, especially not to enter a household with eight people he didn’t know.

‘We would love to.’ Charlie said easily, smiling up at Chuck.

‘This Saturday? Let’s say, 7 o’clock?’ Chuck asked, and Dean made a note that it was Thursday today, which didn’t give him a lot of time to think of a plan.

‘That would be lovely, thank you!’ Charlie seemed better at handling this, more confident in the answers.

‘You could invite the Sheriff along as well, and his family. Think of it as a get to know you party.’ Dean was even more worried now.

‘Brilliant, thank you so much! I’ll let them know.’ Charlie didn’t speak until they had crossed to their side of the road, looking up to meet his gaze.

‘Sam will be fine, Dean.’

 

He knew it was true. Sam took the news perfectly within his stride, quite happy to stay at home alone. Dean left for work the next morning, waving across to Castiel and Gabriel who appeared to be on their way to the store Gabriel owned. Bobby took the invite well, saying he would love to come, and would of course bring Jo and Ellen.

‘He’ll be fine, Dean.’ So many people telling him that Sam would be fine, yet he didn’t quite believe it yet. He sighed, burying his head into the stack of papers on his desk. Tomorrow would be fine, it was just a party. He could be home in an instant, if it was needed.


	3. A wild Moose

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gabriel gets bored at the party, and needs a beer. Castiel asks his brother for advice.

Gabriel loved parties. It had been seven days since the Winchester’s plus a Bradbury had moved into the town, and today was the day of the party! The house was busy, Novak’s preparing food and drink, it would be a casual evening with a buffet to ensure that there was enough if extra guests turned up. Like Sam Winchester, the recluse that none of the Novak’s had seen. Chuck had told them off many a time for sitting at the window in hope they would catch a glimpse, but nothing.

At seven, the doorbell rang, and Anna went to invite the guests in. Bobby walked straight to Chuck, the two men striking up conversation easily. Charlie went to Anna, as planned, and Hester walked across to introduce herself to Ellen and Jo. Michael, ever the charmer, went to speak with them as well. Dean’s gaze flitted across the room, focusing on Cassie before he walked across. Castiel was all too quick to slide across, allowing space for the Winchester next to him.

‘Hi Dean, good first week at work?’ Gabriel groaned internally, this was not fun. The conversation was boring, in fact all the conversations were boring. Gabriel liked parties, but this was more a stand around and eat things event. Not a party.

‘Gabriel, would you go and put these bottles out please?’ Chuck asked politely, but it didn’t stop Gabriel from shooting him a glare. This was no fun, where was the adventure? The excessive alcohol drinking? He grabbed the bottles, heading out of the front door to the storage bin where they were kept. It was then that he noticed the front door to the Winchester household was open, a dark-haired man putting out bottles onto the step just as he was. The man rose up, making eye contact, before looking back to the door as if he needed to escape. Gabriel decided this was his opportunity to actually have a conversation with the recluse, so was gentle about it.

‘I got fed up of your brother flirting with mine, decided to hang out with the bottles.’ Okay, maybe not the most subtle start, but he was surprised when Sam laughed.

‘You must be Gabriel.’ Ah! He’d heard of him! That was exciting. Gabriel straightened, flashing his biggest grin as he mock-bowed in the direction of the Giant on the porch.

‘My reputation really does proceed me.’ Another snort of laugher from the man, who seemed to slightly relax.

‘Yeah, well. Have fun with the bottles, I have a date with Netflix.’ The guy seemed ready to end the conversation, but Gabriel was determined. He had come this far, surely he could get just a little further?

‘Sounds like the height of excitement.’ He lazily remarked, sarcasm lilting his voice. He noted the amusement on the man’s face, watching as he took another step forward. He didn’t step off the Porch though.

‘I have beer as well, makes for a lovely night.’

‘I’ll say. Lucifer drunk the last of my beer.’ Gabriel scoffed, annoyed at his elder brother but unable to do a lot. Luci had a habit of attacking those who stood between him and beer.

‘I’ve got spares, if you want?’ Bordering new territory. He could see the hesitation on the man’s face, but Gabriel crossed the road anyway. He didn’t come any closer than the bottom step of the Porch, waiting until the Giant returned with two beers, handing one across to Gabriel. He stood as far away as possible, but not enough to not notice the obvious height difference.

‘Well, now I looked abnormally small.’ Gabriel commented, taking a sip from the beer as the Giant Moose smirked.

‘I thought you were always abnormally small?’ Gabriel had the decency to look offended, before grinning at the man.

‘Well Samsquatch, not all of us can be giants like you.’ Sam laughed, sipping from his beer as he leant against the doorway.

‘My brother having a good time?’ He finally asked, looking across to the light from the living room. He looked almost longing, as if he wanted to be there with him. Gabriel didn’t understand, it was so obvious he desired to step outside, but something was stopping him from doing so.

‘Yeah, he is. You could come across, you know.’ It was the wrong thing to say, the man closed down instantly and stood straight, taking a step back.

‘It’s getting late, night Gabriel.’ Before he even had a chance, the door was shut between them. Gabriel sighed, turning his back to the house and wandering back towards his own. Whatever the kid was afraid of, he didn’t know if he could fix it. It was a shame, the Moose was rather attractive.

‘Where were you? Whose beer is that?’ Lucifer remarked, spread out on one of the sofas. Most people had sat down, looking up as he walked in and slid down onto the kitchen chair.

‘Sam gave me one. You stole mine.’ He snapped impatiently, taking a long swig. Dean almost choked, sitting upright as Cassie patted his back for him.

‘Sam gave you a beer?’

‘Yes. He was attempting to put bottles out, I made a joke about you two flirting, he laughed. Then offered me a beer.’ Very brief, but it was enough to shock the people in the room that weren’t Novaks.

‘He let you in the house?’

‘Chuck no, I stayed at the bottom of the Porch.’ At the use of Chuck rather than God, my siblings smirked. A family joke, one that had apparently been explained in my absence since nobody looked that surprised.

‘See boy, I told you he was getting better.’ Bobby commented, giving Dean a look.

‘If it isn’t too intrusive, is there a reason he prefers to stay inside?’ Chuck asked it carefully, gauging reactions from the people in the room. Gabriel noted that all of them turned to Bobby, which suggested they didn’t know the whole story. Not even Dean.

‘Isn’t really my story to tell. The kid had an issue four years back, kidnapped for a couple of months. When he came back, he wasn’t the same. I was on the case, but he hasn’t spoken about it to anyone.’ Dean looked away, Castiel taking his hand and squeezing it gently. Gabriel was more intrigued than anything else, wanting to know why the kid didn’t speak about it.

‘I’m sorry for the intrusion.’ Chuck, ever the nice host, remarked. Ellen patted his thigh and smiled, although it was mostly fake.

‘It’s no trouble, Sam’s a good kid. He’ll talk when he’s ready.’

The guests eventually departed, Gabriel heading up to his room. He would need to be up early in the morning, it was a Sunday, and kids loved candy on Sundays. It was one of his best selling times, apart from Friday evenings, after school finished.

A knock on his door turned his attention away from the shirt he had just pulled off, shouting permission for whoever was outside. He fished out one of his sleeping shirts, turning in time to see Castiel enter and shut the door behind him.

‘Cassie, you okay?’ The shirt was a nice fit, one that was a Christmas gift from Cassie. Speaking of, his younger brother awkwardly sat down on the chair, looking up at him with those strange blue eyes.

‘I wish to ask advice. On Dean. He has asked me to dinner on Tuesday night, and I said yes.’ Gabriel was quite surprised that his brother had agreed, even more surprised that he would come here for help.

‘That’s great Cassie! What’s the issue?’

‘I have never been with a man before… and you have. I figured if anyone could advise me on dating, it would be you.’ Gabriel didn’t point out that Balthazar was also gay, instead nodded his head and sat down on the edge of his bedframe, trying to contain his excitement.

‘Well, little brother, this is how you should play it…’


	4. Date Night Gone Wrong

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Castiel and Dean are dating, and things end up going sideways

Dean was on his third date with Castiel. The first had been on Tuesday night, then Wednesday, and now it was Friday. They had just finished the movie, walking out hand in hand as Castiel chatted happily to him. The first date had just been dinner at a restaurant, ending with a peck on the cheek as he dropped him at his door. For the second date, Castiel had taken them to a Go-Kart racing track on the edge of town, it had been the most fun Dean had had since his brother’s incident. Now, walking out of the cinema and towards his Baby, Dean blurted something out without even considering the implications.

‘Do you want to come over for a bit? Have dinner with us?’ He hadn’t done it before, knowing Sam might feel uncomfortable, but right now Dean just wanted to spend time with Castiel. Cas nodded, climbing into the passenger seat as they travelled back. As he pulled into the driveway, Dean started to feel nervous. They had never talked openly about the fact that he and Cas were dating, this could go wrong in so many ways.

Castiel stepped out of the car, offering his hand to Dean in a way that he couldn’t refuse. He slipped his hand into the smaller one, linking their fingers as he led him to the house. He could hear laughing from the living room, and as he walked into the room he was surprised to see that Mario Karts was the current game of choice. Charlie whipped her head round, grinning when she spotted the conjoined hands. Her gaze then flicked to Sam, who had got up off the couch and was walking across.

‘You must be Castiel. I’m Sam, this idiot’s brother.’ He even offered his hand, although Dean could see the slight tremble in it. Castiel shook, before Sam went to the kitchen to prepare dinner. Dean breathed out in relief, smiling to Charlie before pressing a kiss to Castiel’s forehead. His boyfriend chuckled, before Dean raced upstairs to get changed. There had been an incident with popcorn, and he was fed up of it being trapped under his shirt. After changing, he raced back down the stairs, finding Charlie alone in the living room. She was pressed up against the wall, noting he had entered and beckoning him across. Dean joined her, wondering what the hell they were doing, before he heard his boyfriend’s voice in the kitchen.

‘This is delicious! What spices did you use?’ There was the rustling of jars, probably Sam showing him, before Castiel hummed in delight.

‘Did you have fun at the Cinema?’

‘Yes, although Dean managed to get popcorn almost everywhere. It got to the point where he almost cried about the crumbs he would leave in his car.’ Dean’s heart leapt when he heard Sam laugh, it had been a while since that had happened with anyone other than the family.

‘Dean is pretty fond of his Baby.’ Damn right, she was a beauty.

‘Sam… I know Gabriel posted his number through your letterbox. If he is bothering you…’

‘Honestly? It’s alright. I can’t talk face to face, but through text it’s different. Plus, it’s mostly pictures of the Candy Store.’ Dean hadn’t known Gabriel had done that, a flash of slight anger trailing through him at the thought of him taking advantage of his little brother. It was quelled quickly, before Dean walked into the kitchen.

‘Smells good, Sammy.’ A beer was chucked at him, which he caught pretty well. Charlie excused herself, claiming she was spending the evening with Anna, before Sam plated up food and headed towards his room.

‘Sam, you can stay.’ Dean blurted, worried his brother thought he didn’t want him here. It was nothing like that, just because Castiel was here didn’t mean he wanted his brother gone. Sam laughed, picking up an extra slice of Naan bread as he walked to the door.

‘No way am I third-wheeling dude. Have fun you to. Wrap it up!’ He called out as he disappeared up the stairs, leaving Dean to shake his head. It was usual behaviour, but he hadn’t expected him to act like that around Cas. Perhaps he felt safer, knowing Cas was with him?

‘Your brother is a good man.’ Cas commented, tucking into the food. Dean hummed in agreement, and it wasn’t long before the food was gone. Three rounds of Mario Karts later, the two were curled pretty closely on the couch. Dean pressed a kiss to his forehead,

‘Thank you for today. It was perfect.’ Castiel nodded, before tilting his head so that he could reach Cas’s lips. Dean bent down, savouring the taste of Castiel as he moulded against him, shifting so he could hold his body close. The kiss deepened, Dean grazing Cas’s lower lip to ask for entrance, which he was granted.

It felt good. He knew it would be, Castiel was pressed underneath him lying against the couch, legs spread to accommodate for Dean’s weight in between them. When he moved his lips to Cas’s neck, the younger man whined slightly, arching his body up and thrusting his hips against Dean’s. The making out lasted for slightly longer than Dean had expected, till he knew he would need a good thirty minute cold shower to stop the throbbing between his legs. Cas lay there, cheeks flushed and lips slightly swollen, pupils blown with lust.

‘That was…’

‘Incredible?’ Dean quipped, littering kisses across his boyfriend’s face. Cas laughed, swatting him away playfully as he pulled back, cupping the side of Dean’s face.

‘Breath-taking.’ Dean pressed his lips back down, before the door to the house opened and Charlie came in. She laughed, covering her eyes and awkwardly bumping into the wall.

‘Gosh, sorry!’ Dean snorted, rolling of Castiel and doing his shirt back up as Cas did the same.

‘Don’t apologise, we’re decent.’ She opened one eye experimentally, before opening the second one as well. She went to say something witty, probably something that would ultimately have made them all laugh, before they heard shouting from outside. The Cop in Dean had him racing outside, only to see Lucifer standing over a fallen Michael, a guy he didn’t recognise standing there with what appeared to be a knife.

Dean didn’t hesitate, although he probably should have. The fight was difficult, the man with the knife was good, and got a couple of nasty scratches on Dean. Lucifer was dragging Michael away, back towards the Novak house with the help of Cas, while Charlie was on the phone to the Police. Bobby would be here, Dean just needed to last a little longer. He was aware that the Novak’s were all there, unsure of what to do as Dean fell, Cas crying out for him. Charlie screamed at him to run, but Dean was pressed down by a body weight so much larger than his own.

The guy was tall, probably 6ft 3, blonde hair and a bulky frame that was twisting Dean’s muscles in awkward directions. Dean cried out as he tried to hold the knife away from his chest, the man pushing down further. He turned his head to the side, could see Gabriel holding Cas back, Chuck desperately holding onto Michael. Seeing the threat to Dean, Lucifer was running back in this direction, but he was too far away. The knife grazed skin, Dean losing consciousness as the weight held him against the road.

Then, just as quickly as the danger had arrived, it was gone. The guy was thrown off him, Dean breathing in heavily and scrambling back, waiting to see if the new guy would be a problem. Except it wasn’t a problem, it was Sam. He blocked the knife that moved towards him easily, twisting the wrist of the attacker until bones shattered, the knife dropping to the floor at a loss. Although he threw a punch, Sam caught it and twisted his arm behind him, foot kicking the back of the knee so the guy pitched into the road.

‘Dean, get the cuffs.’ But Dean’s body wouldn’t listen to him, not moving as he watched Charlie run across with cuffs, Sam making lightwork of handcuffing the guy and hauling him up. They stood at roughly an equal height, which was terrifying, before Sam delivered a knock that left the guy unconscious.

‘Michael! No, hold on!’ Dean scrambled up, running across to see an awful lot of blood leaving the kids body. Lucifer was by his side, protecting him as if his life depended on it. Although, it didn’t look like there was a lot of life left.

‘Move.’ Sam shoved Dean out the way, dropping beside Michael and looking up at Lucifer.

‘Listen carefully, okay? When I tell you to, I need you to clamp your hands over the wound. Got it?’ Lucifer mutely nodded, Sam stripping away the cloth as he stared at the wound. He made light work stripping the ends of his sleeves, using it to form an odd bundle that he pressed down.

‘Now.’ Lucifer pressed down hard, Sam’s hands ripping more fabric as he formed a second bundle. It went over the first, before he took over holding pressure on the wound, leaving Lucifer to stare at his brother in shock. Sirens wailed, and Dean quickly ran over to meet them. The guy was hauled up, loaded into the back of the police car while the ambulance arrived for Michael. Sam had already backed away, leaving Lucifer to hold the bandage. Dean saw it first, the tell-tale sign of a panic-attack that Sam was about to go into. Leaving the Cop’s side, he ran across to his brother, gripping his arm as he dragged him back to the safety of their house.

‘Sammy? Sammy look at me, I’ve got you.’ His eyes were glazed over, chest heaving as he tried to control breathing. Dean watched in horror as Sam shoved him away, disappearing into the house. The slamming door told him that his brother was hiding, that he needed him but wasn’t going to let him help. Such a big step, and then everything was gone.


	5. Don't mess him around

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Novaks are in the hospital, and Dean gets some bad news

Gabriel hadn’t expected this. He was sitting in the room, Michael propped up and happily talking, slightly drugged up due to the painkillers. The nurses and doctors had all said the same thing, Sam Winchester had saved his life, and now he couldn’t even thank him. It had been five days since the attack, and Dean looked awful. He was sitting next to Cas, dark rings under his eyes as his head rested against Cas’s shoulder. The rest of the family were in here, although heads rose up as the door opened.

Sheriff Singer walked in, a solemn expression on his face. It was odd, considering Michael was okay, there was no reason to look sad. Dean shifted, now awake as Bobby turned to Michael.

‘The man that attacked you was an escaped convict. Three other victims before he made it to this town, none of them were so lucky. He committed suicide this morning.’ Gabriel was pleased about the last bit, although not happy about the rest. Three other victims who didn’t have Sam’s to protect them.

‘Escaped convict?’ Dean asked, sitting up slightly, although his hand didn’t leave Castiels.

‘Dean, could I have a word?’ Bobby asked, looking nervous. Dean shook his head, gesturing to the room.

‘You can speak in front of them.’ Gabriel looked to Castiel, who was smiling down at his boyfriend. In the past five days, Dean had helped all the Novak’s out while they were in the hospital, bringing food and clothing for them, helping with witness statements and keeping the other Cop’s off their backs. Chuck gave him a small nod of thanks. Gabriel knew that Chuck respected Dean, saw him as good for Castiel. It was true, Cassie shone when Dean was around

‘Dean… he wasn’t the only escapee. John… John’s out as well.’ Everyone saw Dean tense, before Castiel blurted.

‘Your father?’ He was on his feet so quickly that it was a blur, staring at Bobby. The room tried not to seem to intrigued by the news, but an escaped father running around? That could only mean trouble.

‘Sammy.’ The look of anguish and pain on Dean’s face was enough to convince Gabriel that this John fellow was the one who had hurt Sam.

‘He’s fine, I have Cops outside the house to protect him. Dean, he can’t get him again.’

‘That’s what you said the first time!’ Gabriel had never heard him shout, but boy was Dean angry. His fists clenched, voice dropping low as all the muscles in him tensed. Bobby gave him a look, one that was like a father scolding their child.

‘Sam is fine.’ Dean relaxed when Cas stood beside him, pressing a hand to his shoulder. The contact made the Cop relax, although he didn’t look too much better. The door opened again, this time it was Charlie who came in, looking flustered.

‘We came as soon as we heard!’ She pulled Dean in for a hug, basically barrelling into him, but the Cop hugged her back. Bobby nodded to Michael, then to Chuck, before he left the room. Gabriel watched the exchange, smiling at the obvious love between them.

‘I know… it’s okay thought it’ll be… wait. We?’ Silence, until the door swung open, a certain Moose wandering into the room. His eyes danced, hands shook ever so slightly although he still looked every inch the hero of the situation.

‘Moose!’ Gabriel had to admit, the amount of excitement that went into that statement was quite embarrassing. Sam smirked slightly, before looking to Dean.

‘Thought you could do with some clothes. And sleep. Ellen and Jo are worried.’ Dean still stood there with his mouth open like a Guppy fish, looking thoroughly confused.

‘You left the house.’ He finally stated. The Novak’s were all watching with interest, Castiel had sat back down and Charlie had backed up to the wall.

‘Yes well, the house isn’t very safe is Dad’s out, is it? I’m here to…’ He broke off, as if realising what he was about to say was over the limit.

‘Protect me?’ Dean finished, studying his brother for an awkward amount of time. Gabriel sighed as the Moose turned, walking back to the door. Apparently, that was the limit of social interaction that Sammich could handle.

‘I’ll be at home, the bags with Charlie.’ Gabriel stood, ignoring the looks his siblings gave him, and ran off after the tall haired Giant.

‘Moose! Wait!’ He turned, face confused as Gabriel caught up.

‘Thank you. For saving Michael.’ Sam looked ashamed, which was odd, looking away as he nodded.

‘It was nothing.’

‘Now kid, not many people could do that. Just… promise me something?’ Sam now looked even more surprised, and slightly uncomfortable as more people walked around him. Gabriel watched him tense every time somebody was within reaching distance, but he still waited.

‘What?’

‘Answer my texts?’ Gabriel said, winking as he did so. It had taken a lot of energy to send photos of the candy store to Sam, who rarely replied, often with sarcasm. The Moose looked surprised, but nodded with the smallest smile on his face. He walked away, leaving Gabriel to think about the silvery scars he had seen on the skin Sam had shown when he had ripped at his shirt. He knew his siblings had noticed, but were too caught up on saving Michael to worry about whatever had happened. Though they were curious, they would never push it. Not like Gabriel would.

Michael looked up when he walked back in, although some people in the room had gone. Dean, Cas, Charlie and his three younger siblings had gone, probably at Chuck’s request. Lucifer watched him sit down, Chuck not taking his eyes of Michael.

‘They’ve gone to get food.’ Lucifer stated, Gabriel squirming slightly under the intense gaze. He was worried everyone could see just how much he cared for the Jolly Giant, but tried to remind himself he was good at hiding things with sarcasm. Even if they thought they knew, they couldn’t possibly be certain.

‘Don’t mess him around, Gabriel.’ Lucifer muttered quietly, before turning back to his brother. Try as he might, the witty comeback never came, and Gabriel was left longing for the odd Moose to come back.


	6. Gardening

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam goes walking.

Sam sat in his room, watching his brother leave Castiel at the door, pressing a kiss to his lips. Michael had come home three days ago, since then things had gone back to how they were before. The younger Winchester sighed, heading to the shower to rid himself of the sweat that had formed earlier when he had received the letter. Dean didn’t monitor the post, so why would he check a letter addressed to Sam? He wasn’t sure if he would have preferred for Dean to find it, the note quite simply said that John knew where he was. That was Sam’s main issue, but not the only one.

His second issue was a certain small Novak. Gabriel was persistent with his messages, smiling every time he saw him through the window, waving in the morning on the way to his job. It made Sam feel conflicted, on the one hand he could see the friendship blooming, on the other hand, he wanted to hide away from the overconfidence. It was fear, fear of losing people if he let them close. John wouldn’t hurt Dean, so he could keep him close. John wouldn’t hurt Bobby, therefore wouldn’t hurt Ellen and Jo. He had been worried about Charlie, but when she had settled comfortably as the younger sister, he hadn’t pushed the issue of her being in harms way.

The shower didn’t help his problems, but it did allow him to think. Dean was going across to the Novak’s later, as was Charlie, which would mean he was alone. That was good, but also not so good. It meant he could spend time without having to put up a front, to actually be himself, but it also meant the doubts would come back. He sighed, stepping from the shower and drying. Shrugging on a fresh pair of jeans, he realised he had forgotten to bring a shirt. In four years, he had managed to always wear long-sleeves, for his brother to never see skin. Instead, he had been so focused on Gabriel and the letter that he had completely forgotten his scarred skin.

With a deep breath, convincing himself that Dean wouldn’t care if he was slightly torn up, Sam stepped from the bathroom. The corridor was empty, so he made his way towards his room. Dean was sitting on his bed, his head rising when Sam entered. Sam watched awkwardly as Dean took in the silver scars before he grabbed a shirt and pulled it over. A vest-top, so the scars on his arms and the ones around his collarbone and shoulder blades could be seen.

‘You okay, Dean?’ He tried to keep his voice steady, watching as Dean stood up. Although taller, Sam had always felt the inferior one. It didn’t matter that he stood as tall as a Giant, his brother was definitely the one in charge.

‘I’ve never seen them before.’ He remarked, voice a mixture of sadness and… awe? Sam found his brother’s green eyes, watching the hand that reached to brush lightly across one of them. He struggled to fight the urge to flinch, keeping still as Dean looked at each one that was on show. He didn’t look disgusted, instead intrigued.

‘I didn’t think you’d want to.’ It was the closest they had got to talking about this subject in a long time. Dean’s fingers paused on a slice along the collarbone, jagged and rough.

‘What happened?’ It was a direct question, about one specific scar. Sam knew Dean was expecting him to push him off, to tell him to get out and shut down. Forcing the bile back down, he looked away from his brother’s gaze.

‘Was one of the last cuts. I argued with him.’ The words were difficult, he felt Dean tense up before relaxing. The moment was too much, but his brother could read him better than he could.

‘You can keep the flannel off, it’s just me and Charlie.’ Sam kept his eyes away from Deans as he left, before picking up the overshirt. The material felt thick in his hands, as if he was trying to cover a secret that was not longer a secret. Putting the shirt back down, Sam walked out of the door and towards the kitchen. Helping himself to a beer, he walked through to the main room where Charlie was playing Mario Karts. She grinned up at him, barely acknowledging the scars, offering him a controller.

After both of them had left, he decided that it was time to push his luck. The Cops patrolled every hour, meaning he had the opportunity to sneak out and not be noticed doing so. To Sam, the idea seemed ridiculous, yet here he was, dressed ready to go out. It was only half-five, meaning he could make it to his destination before it closed. Locking the door behind him, he looked at the Porch, then the space in front of him. Before he could back out, he set in motion his plan. The walk was brisk, a twenty minute walk before he purchased the items he required. He refrained from staying too close to anybody, before leaving the shop quickly.

He ran straight into someone, a small girl at waist height. She looked up, suddenly he realised how tall he really was.

‘Sorry Sir, I didn’t see you.’ He thought it was quite amusing, considering he was literally the tallest person. She seemed to get the joke, a small smile spreading across her face.

‘It was my fault. Hey, where’s your mum?’ The kid looked around, before looking down, tears forming.

‘I lost her. She gave me her number, but I can’t find a phone.’ Sam pulled out his mobile, offering it to her as he showed her how to put it on speaker. The woman picked up after two rings, apparently quite frantic.

‘Amberly? Where are you?’

‘Mum, some nice man let me borrow his phone. I’m outside the Garden Centre.’ She tried to keep her voice steady, but she was really quite distraught. Sam put a hand onto her shoulder, taking the phone back.

‘Ma’am? My name is Sam Winchester.’ He proceeded to tell her the address, and that he would be waiting with her until she arrived. It didn’t take long, ten minutes for the woman to pull the car up. She jumped out, wrapping her arms around her child before looking up at Sam.

‘You’re Dean’s brother, aren’t you?’ He nodded politely, wishing to be anywhere but with strange people watching them. He forced himself to look at Amberly, who was smiling up at him.

‘Can we offer you a lift home?’ He accepted, only because he would face less people being driven back. Amberly sat in the front, happily chatting away to her mother while Sam sat there, knowing the mother was watching him in the mirror. He was even more worried when they pulled up outside his house, Bobby, Ellen and Jo were at the front door of the Novak’s. Dean was standing with Cas, everyone looking confused when the car pulled up.

‘Thanks for the lift.’ Sam stepped out the car, ignoring the confused faces and striding towards the safety of the house. He turned when a small child followed him, bending down low so that Amberly could wrap her arms around him and press a kiss to his cheek.

‘Thank you for your help, Mr Sam.’ He chuckled, pulling away and booping her nose.

‘That’s okay, it was nice to meet you Amberly.’ She ran back to the car, Sam watched as it pulled away, before his gaze flitted to his brother. He saw the hope shining in his eyes, but it was quickly replaced when a small Novak came running across the road.

‘Sammich! You promised not to ignore meeeee!’ He squealed, halting with the proper distance. Sam smiled, pulling out his phone and typing the message,

**Up for a game of Mario Karts?**

Gabriel grinned, nodding happily as Sam turned back to the house, settling in the knowledge that Gabriel was behind him.

 

Three hours later, it was getting late and Gabriel was sprawled out across the sofa, almost falling asleep. Sam chuckled, standing up and shaking the guy lightly, watching the golden-brown eyes open and focus on him. They flicked down to his now bare arms, tracing the scars before looking back at him.

‘Night time?’ Gabriel asked, rolling of the couch when he nodded. Sam led him to the door, before Gabriel wrapped his arms around him. He tensed, the urge to shove him off was pretty strong. He held still, even hugged him back slightly.

‘That was an improvement, Samshine.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you're enjoying the story, more chapters coming soon!


	7. Letters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Truths are revealed, big chapter next

Dean was watching the improvement. Sam would now spend time outside in the garden, having taken a liking to a flower patch. He’d allow Gabriel into the house, growing almost as comfortable with him as he was with Castiel. It was a different sort of friendship, Dean knew that, but he could see the potential of it being something else. He also knew how much that frightened Sam, so he didn’t bring it up.

His brother was currently lounging outside in the sun, spread out on a picnic blanket listening to Gabriel rattle on about something that was probably to do with the store. Sam had promised to one day visit, although after the impromptu visit to the Garden Centre to by some seeds and flowers, he seemed content with staying at the house. There had been no sign of John, Dean so desperately wanted his brother to talk to him about it, but there were some things he couldn’t push.

‘He’ll come round, Dean.’ They were in the Novak household, sitting on the window seat. Most of the siblings and Chuck were watching Gabriel, worried that he was pushing too many limits with Sam. It had ended badly two days ago, when Gabriel had to call Dean due to a breakdown. Ever since, the family had been telling him to be gentle around Sam, that he needed to recover slowly.

‘He showed you the scars, didn’t he? That’s a good step.’ Charlie commented, standing with Anna. Dean hummed thoughtfully, finally admitting his fear.

‘He’s keeping something from me.’ Many things, but there was something new. He could tell, his brother had been making so many improvements, but one thing kept holding him back. Like right now, he seemed relaxed, until you fully took in his posture.  The Kid may be lying on the grass, but his legs were propped up so he could run, and his fists would randomly clench every so often. If Gabriel had noticed, he didn’t bring it up.

Dean was happy though. His dates with Castiel had been improving, the make-out sessions were incredible, and he was happy. His boyfriend, Castiel Novak. It was a title that never failed to make Dean smile, even now with Cas holding his hand.

‘I’m sure if it were important, he would tell you.’ Castiel commented, but Dean knew they were thinking the same thing. A couple of days ago, just before the breakdown, Dean and Cas had been making out in the living room. When Sam had walked in, completely unaware that Cas was there, he had turned the brightest shade. Muttering something about how he would speak to him later, he backed away quickly. Then the incident with Gabriel, followed by Sam’s refusal to bring up the conversation.

‘Any leads on John?’ Chuck asked. All of them were curious, but Dean knew as much about the crimes as they did. It had been kept firmly under-wraps, but Dean knew he hadn’t been the only one to go to prison for his brother’s case. He just didn’t know why.

‘I haven’t heard anything. I have no idea where he would go, what he would do. Hell, I don’t even know what he did before he went to Prison.’ Chuck gave him an apologetic look, one that told him he was sorry for bringing it up.

‘Maybe that is what Sam’s trying to tell you.  Something about his location?’ Anna hesitantly suggested, looking to Lucifer. Dean had quickly figured out that Lucifer was the smart one, Balthazar the closest with the sisters, Michael the only one who could calm Lucifer and Hester was spending most of her time away. Cas was the baby of the group, although he was the same age as Sam.

‘It’s a possibility.’ Dean stated, looking back out as Gabriel rolled across the lawn while Sam rose his head, his attention apparently on something other than the small Novak. The post was delivered, Sam barely waiting till the van had gone before he stalked across. This was also something that was new, the amount of post Sam had been getting. Gabriel was creeping up behind him, Castiel muttered at him not to be an idiot, before the entire Novak family, plus Dean and Charlie, watched the small man jump onto Sam, tackling him for the letter.

 

*Gabriel*

It annoyed him when Samshine ignored him. Like now, stalking a letter rather than his affections. He had seen similar letters arrive, and knew Sam well enough to know that he was hiding something. Hence why he was currently on Sam’s back, hanging on like a monkey as he yanked the letter from his grip. Sam seemed to freeze up, Gabriel not hesitating to rip open the envelope and pull the letter out.

**Sam.**

**Almost there now, such a pretty boy that your friends with. Time for another death?**

Gabriel froze. He had been expecting some secret lover, perhaps a long distance relationship. Instead, someone was threatening him? And was that him, the pretty boy? He rose his head, staring at Sam for a long time. The Moose was trembling, hands shaking badly as he stood there.

‘Sam, care to explain?’ Sam didn’t seek out affection. If people gave it, so be it. Which was the cause of Gabriel’s surprise when the Giant stepped forwards, wrapping his arms around him. His head buried into the crook of his neck, chest threatening to burst if he didn’t breathe soon. Gabriel hugged him back, waiting till the Giant pulled back before giving a smile.

‘He’s coming. He knows where I am, he knows about you. I can’t let him hurt anyone again.’ It was the again that made Gabriel pause, knowing he was stepping out of a boundary that would break something.

‘You’ve got more letters?’ He nodded, looking so guilty. The Kid was blaming himself, Gabriel could see that.

‘Right, listen up. I’m going to go and get Dean, Cassie and Charlie. We’re going to get Bobby, and Ellen and Jo if you want them. Then you’re going to explain the letters, and we can figure out a plan together.’ He sounded confident, he was sure this could work. The Moose nodded.

‘I’ll come across once I’ve got them.’ Sam walked back to the house. Gabriel made light work of reaching the group in the Novak house, narrowly avoiding the punch Dean threw his way when he walked in.

‘Bitch.’

‘I need you to call the Sheriff, and his family. We’re having a meeting. Urgently.’ Dean hesitated, apparently understanding the emergency and actually listening. It took ten minutes for the group to converge, although most of the Novak siblings had been kicked from the room. Gabriel paced anxiously, worried Sam wouldn’t show. Bobby was here, Ellen looking nervous. Jo was with Charlie and Dean, Castiel sitting to the side watching him with a look that was concerning. Chuck was here, sitting in the corner.

‘What’s the emergency, boy?’ It wasn’t harsh, but you could tell the Sheriff meant business. Gabriel opened his mouth, praying some words would come out, before the door swung open. Sam was doing his best at being small, although the poor kid was towering over all of them. Gabriel had this bit covered, taking the box from his hand and offering a chair.

‘John’s been sending Sam letters.’ He slid the box towards Dean, who practically ripped it open and scanned through them. Gabriel was half-watching them, half watching the Moose nervously shaking in the corner. When Dean had read them, along with the group surrounding him, including Chuck, the silence finally broke.

‘Sam, who died?’


	8. Too late for truths

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam tells them necessary information, then goes for a bath.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys, the end of this chapter contains Sam attempting to commit suicide. If this could trigger you, please don't read the end!

This wasn’t fun. Having them read the letters was basically tearing Sam apart. He tried to remain still, knowing Gabriel was watching him. It couldn’t stop the jittering, Dean was reading some of the things that were most personal. He would want an explanation, something about what had happened four years ago.

‘Sam, who died?’ It was Dean that asked, looking up at him with a look that was honestly confused.

‘That was the body we found. The John Doe.’ Bobby stated, and of course, went on to explain the body that had been found and couldn’t be identified due to the level of torture, burning and bleaching of DNA. No records, no trace. Dean looked back to Sam, waiting. He knew they were expecting the answer, but this was awkward.

‘His name was Andy.’

‘Who killed him?’ Dean was going into Cop mode, although he was still concerned. It was laced throughout his tone.

‘James Baratt. A friend of Johns.’

‘Why did they kill him?’ Sam sucked in breath, looking away guiltily. This bit, this was the part that was his fault. He didn’t want Dean to judge him for this.

‘Because I was dating him.’ Silence. Nobody spoke, and Sam tried to stop his body from shaking.

‘Why is John coming for you?’ No, not that question. Tears, not yet spilling, although they certainly welled up.

‘Because I got him locked up.’ For something that had been Sam’s fault in the first place.

‘Do you know where he is?’ Did he? Doubtable, but he had one thing that could identify him.

‘He may be at the warehouse.’

‘We never found it.’ Bobby remarked, and it was true. Sam had adamantly stated he couldn’t remember where it was, but it didn’t mean he couldn’t find out. Sam reached into his back pocket, pulling out the image. It was well-worn, but the numbers on the barn wall were still there. He stared at it, before sliding it to Dean. His brother to begin with recoiled, probably not liking the fact that the picture contained an image of Sam half-starved. But it was the writing on the wall he focused on, handing it to Bobby.

‘Anything else that could help us?’

‘Uh, yeah. A dealer who might know where he is, they were pretty good buddies. John allowed him to trial some stuff on me and Andy.’ He wrote the information down, passing it across.

‘Dealer?’ Dean’s voice was growing angry, which made Sam shake slightly more.

‘Roofies, mostly.’ He waited for his brother to lash out, to hate him. Instead he nodded, turning to Bobby.

‘Three farms with that kind of lettering. Sam, you recognise any of these?’ The laptop Bobby had brought was turned round, three different barns pictured. Sam stopped breathing for the slightest moment, focusing on something in the third picture.

‘Not specifically, but that symbol…’ Bobby noted it, before looking up for the explanation. Sam stared around the room, aware that everybody in here was family, apart from Cas and Gabriel and Chuck, of which they would be if everything went well. He stood, tugging the shirt over his head and turning around. The brand was the most painful scar he had, Dean swore under his breath, but Bobby just thanked him. The shirt back on, he sat down, jumping out of his skin when the phone rang. He pulled it from his pocket, answering it hesitantly.

‘Hello?’

‘Hi Sam, long time no chat.’ Sam very slowly lowered the phone, pressing the speaker button as he pressed a finger to his lips in Dean’s direction.

‘What do you want?’ He wished he sounded more confident.

‘Can’t I call my failure of a son every so often?’ Sam didn’t bother with the response, knowing something else was coming his way.

‘I wonder, how’s that pretty boy doing? As good as Andy?’ He took the phone of speaker sharply, pressing it to his ear.

‘Shut the hell up.’

‘Now Sam, play nicely. We all know whose fault it was, such a tragic thing. And now your brother is taking after you… whatever will I do?’

‘What do you want?’ Sam repeated, ignoring the glares Dean was giving him to hang up.

‘Just say it, Sam.’

‘Fuck you.’

‘Temper will get you nowhere. Although, it may help when I finally catch up with that pretty boy you have, and Dean’s new partner. What’s his name? Castiel?’ Sam could feel his heart breaking, the danger he was putting his brother and the Novak’s in was unreal.

‘It was my fault. I get that. Now leave them alone.’

‘You know where to find me Sam. I’ll be waiting, come alone.’ And with that, the phone hung up, leaving Sam to stare into the distance while wondering exactly what he had gotten himself into.

 

He had gone home. Gabriel hadn’t wanted to leave him, probably the right thing to do, because Sam stared down at the knife, then back to his wrists. It was simple, John would leave them alone if he wasn’t here. Dean could stay with Cas, Gabriel wouldn’t get tortured like Andy had done. He could do what he was too chicken to do last time, to be the hero. Dean had left with Bobby, apparently they had called Cops to sort the issue. It didn’t solve anything, it just meant that Sam was alone.

The knife slid across skin, red beads of blood forming as it moved. Oddly numb, the pain wasn’t solving anything. He didn’t actually want to die, he just wanted his brother to be safe, to not have to worry about him anymore. He was a burden, one that was keeping his brother here rather than allowing him to have the life he deserved. Sam wasn’t sure how long he sat there, blood dripping from his arms, before Charlie knocked on the bathroom door.

‘Sam? Sam they’ve found him, they’ve got him.’ It was a bitter sweet relief, John had been caught and Dean was safe. He shuffled further against the wall, his head going dizzy as he looked at the blood around him. More knocking on the door, followed by some shouting, but Sam couldn’t find the strength to reply. Instead, he allowed his head to tilt to the side, eyes feeling heavy. Charlie was now kicking the door, before he heard it splinter and light poured into the room. He could hear her calling out to him, could hear her on the phone, but that was it. From there, he relaxed back and allowed his eyes to finally shut, ignoring the hands pressing down against the cuts he had made.


	9. Too late

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things head south between Sam and Dean. Gabriel bonds with the younger Winchester.

Dean had watched them take his father back to prison, before getting the call from Charlie that Sam was in the hospital. He had arrived at the same time that Cas and Gabriel had, running through to find the room. Charlie was sitting outside, her head resting against Bobby’s shoulder. Ellen was speaking to Jo, but both stood up when Dean rounded the corner.

‘Where is he?’

‘Being spoken to about the incident.’ Charlie said, and it was then that Dean noticed the blood staining her shirt. He felt guilty, he should have known his brother would try something stupid. Gabriel sunk down onto the chair next to Charlie, looking thoroughly exhausted. Cas looked to Dean, before sitting beside his brother.

‘Mr Winchester?’ A small nurse came out of the room, her eyes scanning the group. They landed on him as he stepped forwards, looking terrified.

‘Yes? Is he okay? Can I see him?’

‘Five minutes, he needs rest. He had a blood transfusion to replace what was lost, he will make a full recovery, physically.’ She didn’t need to say the rest, he understood. It meant Sam hadn’t spoken about it, like always. He walked past the nurse, opening the door and focusing on his brother. Sam looked a little pale, but otherwise okay. His arms were wrapped up, not enough to hide the scars over his shoulders. Still in jeans and one of his shirts, floppy hair sticking up at odd angles.

‘What the hell Sammy?’ He hadn’t actually meant to say that, but it had come out before he could stop it. The anger he had felt, anger he hadn’t had a chance to release while they had hunted down John, bubbled up to the surface as his brother remained calm.

‘I thought it would keep you safe.’ Jesus, his brother just needed to talk to him! If he told him what was going on in that nerdy brain, maybe he could help!

‘Just tell me what happened! Let me help!’ His voice was raising slightly, enough that it was causing the heart monitor to speed up. Whether it was from anger or fear, Dean couldn’t tell. When his brother didn’t respond, he grew harsher.

‘I’ve given you four years, JUST TELL ME WHAT HAPPENED!’ Sam tore the monitor from his finger, the flatlining sound drawing the attention of nurses he heard coming down the corridor. His brother stood up, gripping the clipboard at the end of the bed and signed the paper, before walking towards the door.

‘Bye, Dean.’

‘Fine. Run away, like you always do.’ Sam ignored him, throwing the door open and shoving the clipboard to the first nurse he saw. Despite their protests, and the shocked faces of the people waiting outside the room for him, he walked off down the corridor.

‘COWARD!’ Dean shouted after him, but his brother didn’t rise to the challenge. He just left, leaving Dean to be scolded by the nurses.

‘He’ll go home. I will check on him.’ He snapped impatiently, turning to Castiel for backup. This time, his boyfriend didn’t seem to be on his side. In fact, he looked utterly horrified.

‘What the hell were you thinking, you idgit?’ Bobby shouted, squaring up to Dean as he stood there. The Winchester backed down, grabbing his car keys from his pocket ready to chase after his brother.

‘Maybe you shouldn’t.’ Castiel lightly commented, before Gabriel stood and walked away. Dean blinked, knowing Gabriel was going after Sam, but also knowing Castiel was basically telling him that his brother wouldn’t want him.

 

Nobody spoke to him on the way home, it remained silent. Gabriel’s car was outside the Winchester house, Gabriel leaning against it. Dean got out, just in time to see his brother walk out of the house, a duffel bag in his hand as he strode past his brother. He chucked it into the trunk of Gabriel’s car, who remained silent throughout the whole thing.

‘Where are you going?’ Dean finally asked, watching his brother pause.

‘Away from you.’ And with that, Sam slid into the passenger seat of the car. Gabriel gave his brother a hug, before nodding to Bobby.

‘Keep him safe.’ Bobby remarked, Gabriel’s normal humour returning as he gave the Sheriff a wink. He refused to talk to Dean, starting the engine and pulling away, leaving Cas to wrap an arm around Dean’s waist.

‘We’ll interview John. Come on.’ Bobby snapped, obviously still angry at him. Dean knew that it was a test, but he was going to do the interview and find out what happened to his brother, then he was going to help fix it.

 

*Gabriel*

He drove away, following the address Sam had given him. The Kid looked awful, but he didn’t comment on his state as they drove away from his brother. They didn’t comment on the fact that he had tried to kill himself, or why. Instead, Gabriel turned up the music and sang along happily, occasionally throwing winks towards his passenger, who would grace him with a smile at that moment.

The drive was long, but Gabriel didn’t complain. Castiel and Charlie had agreed to cover the store for him while he was away, even if he didn’t really know where they were. He pulled into the carpark, picking a space where his shiny car wouldn’t be scratched, before stepping out. He had brought his suitcase, Sam grabbing his duffel before walking towards the stair case out of the underground car lot. Gabriel followed, cursing his tiny legs as the huge Moose strode away. The stairs looked quite daunting, but apparently Sam had already figured that out, grabbing the case from Gabriel’s hand and lifting it. If it hurt the stitches in his arm, he didn’t comment on it, and Gabriel didn’t attempt to stop him. They arrived in a pretty swish lobby, a glass elevator tinted sky blue in the corner.

Sam knew where he was going, so Gabriel was happy enough to follow him. The elevator rose, before stopping on the twelfth floor. Sam stepped out, the only thing in the cream corridor was one door. He pulled a key from his pocket, unlocking the door before inviting Gabriel in. He followed the Giant, gasping in surprise.

It was huge. An apartment, open-plan, stretching out in front. Glass allowed him to look out across the city they were currently in, couches spread out in a lowered part of the floor. A clean Granite kitchen, an oak table in the middle. Bookshelves lined the sky blue room, a huge TV screen in the corner with different Game stations next to it. He grinned, twirling around in the huge room.

‘Spare bedroom is through that door, bathroom is that room there.’ He pointed them both out, looking nervous as Gabriel ran through to the room. A huge double bed, the room a light blue and silver combination. It was beautiful, Gabriel couldn’t quite believe Sam trusted him enough to be here. He investigated the bathroom, grinning at the huge stone bathtub, the walk in shower that had side jets. It was like a steam room, he was so excited to use this.

‘Pretty cool, huh?’ Sam was leaning against the doorway, looking amused. He shot the Moose a wink, deciding to revert back to normal flirtation.

‘Fan of sharing the bath?’ Sam chuckled, walking out. Gabriel followed, Sam showing him where his room was before leading Gabriel to the centre of the living room. A stone circle was in the middle, rather like a coffee table, before Sam pressed a button on the underside of the lipped top, and the alter-piece rose. Gabriel squeaked, jumping back as the stone rose and split, revealing a small staircase.

‘Narnia?’ He questioned, while Sam just grinned and stepped towards the staircase. He offered Gabriel his hand, which of course he accepted, although he did note the slight tremble of it. It was dark inside the staircase, before Sam found the light switch.

A wine cellar. Bottles of wine, all different colours, plus a couple of beer barrels. Gabriel’s eyes widened, turning to look up at Sam with confusion.

‘I used to collect them. You’re the only person to be inside the apartment, and the only one to see the cellar.’ Gabriel bit his tongue, before deciding to push his luck.

‘What about Andy?’

‘We were on our way here when John found us. It was supposed to be our third month surprise.’ He smiled fondly, picking up one of the bottles to admire it.

‘I’m sorry for your loss.’ Gabriel meant it.

‘It’s okay. He was the one who told John where I was, he thought it would keep him safe. Turns out my dad wasn’t a big fan of gay people.’ It was more information than Gabriel thought he would get, so he didn’t push his luck anymore. Instead, he picked up one of the bottles and showed it to Sam.

‘How about a celebration?’ Sam’s faraway look faded, replaced with a grin as he nodded, Gabriel following the Moose back towards his apartment.


	10. Bad Stuff

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter includes some pretty dark stuff. Be aware.

*Dean*

He watched as the cops sat down in front of his father, the letters being shown to him as evidence. The two cops were the same ones that had done the last interviews, apparently it was supposed to keep whatever had happened under wraps. Bobby stood by his side behind the one-way glass, turning to him with a look that told Dean he was in trouble.

‘You listen to me, boy. I love you and your brother like you’re my boys, but sometimes you ain’t half stupid. You’re going to listen, and you ain’t going to say anything to your brother about this until he is ready.’ Dean nodded, happy to be in cop-mode, looking back to the glass. His father looked amused as the first question came up.

‘These letters, Mr Winchester. What was the aim?’

‘To get Sam to find me.’ John didn’t seem to have a need to lie, he was already going back to prison.

‘To do what?’

‘Finish what I started.’ Bobby sighed, slumping down into one of the chairs. Casual questions continued, before the Cop stood.

‘For previous crimes of kidnapping, assault, sexual assault, rape, murder, possession of drugs and torture you will serve your original sentence. You’ll be tried for your recent escape, and the intent of hurting, as well as the letters sent.’ John didn’t seem to care, sitting back in the chair with a smirk. Dean was more focused on the charges, more importantly, the rape. Was that to Andy? Would he really do that to Sam?

‘Tell me, did he die?’ John inquired, leaning forwards. The Cop shook his head briefly, and a sickening smile crossed his father’s face. He was led out, and Dean turned to Bobby, evidently his face showing a confused look.

‘It wasn’t Andy.’ Dean frowned, before realising what that meant. His eyes widened, hands instinctively tensing. It couldn’t… that couldn’t be true.

‘But…’

‘Even we don’t know what happened, kid. Just what the DNA told us. Sam never admitted to anything.’ Dean tore out of the room, ignoring Bobby shouting at him as he sat behind the Impala, driving home at a speed. Every second he spent without Sam, or he spent thinking about what he had said to Sam, made him feel sick. He could have prevented this, but he made it worse. Tried to push Sammy after he’d tried to… Oh god, this was all his fault. He was a cop, he should know better than anyone not to push trauma victims. He should have done something, got him counselling, had him go through help.

He parked the Impala, taking her keys out and getting out of the car, staggering towards the door. Charlie opened the door when the car pulled up, looking worried, but he didn’t care if the entire fricking neighbourhood was watching. His head hurt, everything hurt, and he just wanted to scream.

He didn’t, instead sinking to his knees and sobbing. Charlie reached him first, although a second pair of arms behind him told him that Castiel was by his side. Winchesters had never been great with emotions, maybe that was why he was now breaking so hard. He couldn’t help but remember times when Sammy was a kid, where Dean had told him he just needed to be brave and smile.

He allowed himself to be led through the house, up the stairs, before Castiel was undressing him and putting him into pyjamas. He didn’t argue, allowing it to happen until Cas tugged him to the bed, Dean putting his head to Cas’s chest. Soft fingers wrapped into his hair, a hand soothing his back as Dean sobbed.

‘He- he didn’t t-tell them.’ Dean mumbled, holding Castiel for all he was worth. Cas didn’t say anything, allowing him to continue.

‘They… John, h-he… raped…’ He cut off again, sobbing louder. Charlie had entered the room, tears in her eyes as she settled in the chair, placing a cup of hot chocolate next to the bed. Dean continued to cry, not caring that he looked weak, not caring that people could see. He just wanted his brother back, wanted to tell him he was sorry for what he did. Sorry for pushing Sammy.

 

*Castiel*

He’d suspected, of course, that something like that had happened to the younger Winchester. Hearing it confirmed, however, was a lot harder than he suspected. It tugged hard at his heart, making the youngest Novak want to cry for him. He didn’t, instead sat with Dean as he cried himself to sleep. Charlie didn’t look much better, and he knew pretty quickly that he needed to tell Gabriel not to be a dick.

Shuffling slightly, he managed to get his phone out of his pocket. Swiping the screen, he brought up Gabriel’s number and shot him a text.

**Castiel: Gabriel, Dean just returned from the Police Station. Sam didn’t tell them what happened, they got it all from DNA evidence. Dean’s pretty messed up, be careful with Sam.**

**Gabe: DNA? Don’t tell me John… Right. Serves your pretty boyfriend right, he said some hurtful crap. Sammy is fine, he showed me his wine cellar.**

Castiel really hoped that wasn’t a euphemism, but he couldn’t help but agree slightly with his elder brother. Dean had made a mistake, but one that cost him his brother. He wasn’t yet sure if Sam would trust Dean again, although it had brought him closer to Gabriel. Castiel wasn’t sure if that was a good thing, his brother never seemed to be the most practical and sensitive person. Sliding out from under Dean, he walked to the kitchen. Charlie was drinking what appeared to be vodka, which didn’t bode well.

‘It won’t help.’

‘I should have helped him.’ She slurred, and Castiel knew how badly this was affecting the both of them. Taking the bottle from her grip, he shot a text to Anna to tell her that she should come and check on Charlie. The reply was almost instant, and he smiled happily. They could manage this, and when it came to it, Castiel was sure Sam would forgive his brother.


	11. Love you, De

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter switches POV. Cute scenes coming

Dean hated him. Castiel hated him. Charlie probably hated him, as did Bobby. Hell, nobody hated Sam as much as he hated himself. He sat there, for the fourth day, just staring out of the window. This was his problem. He’d caused this, he’d been the one that had provoked John, and everything that had happened since was his fault. Dean… god he’d hurt his brother. The man that had attempted to raise him, and Sam had pushed him away, just because he was too afraid.

Sam had just wanted to be like Dean. To keep the emotions away, because Dean was so fricking good at it. Hell, he was a Cop. Dean was the kind of man you could respect, and Sam had always aspired to be like him. Instead, he ended up being a failure and a nutcase, prone to diving into sticky-situations. Sam bit down on his lip, feeling blood drip as he tore at the bandages on his arm. The stitches looked nasty, the cuts were gross, but seeing them calmed him for some reason.

He didn’t want to die. He wanted to be better. He wanted Dean to love him, he wanted people to see that he wasn’t some hopeless case. That he was a person, and maybe, just maybe, he needed to open up to do so. Stop trying to be like his brother, and be more like him. Sam. Be himself.

‘Sammy that shower is… woah hey, you alright?’ Gabriel crouched down, not quite touching skin as he stared at him. Sam blinked, staring down into whiskey-eyes and finally it clicked. Something just clicked, and he realised that he was the one who was holding himself back. He hesitantly wrapped his arms around Gabriel, the smaller guy making a noise of surprise before hugging him back.

Gabriel had redressed his arms, before Sam curled up next to him on his bed, both of them watching a movie. He could tell Gabriel wanted to ask stuff, it was what made him Gabriel, and Sam laughed slightly when he saw the man jittering.

‘What’s so funny, Moose?’

‘You, shortstack. Just ask the questions, you’re practically going to burst.’ Gabriel pouted, but looked up from where he was resting his head on Sam’s chest.

‘So, Andy told John where you were? Why?’ Sam paused, fingers brushing through Gabriel’s hair lightly.

‘John threatened him, and Andy thought if he gave up my location he would go free.’

‘I’m guessing it didn’t work?’

‘He took both of us, made a show of torturing Andy in front of me before a friend ended up killing him.’ Gabriel tensed, but Sam just kept stroking his hair. If Gabriel decided to leave, then he left. That was his decision, and Sam couldn’t live his life by someone else’s rules anymore.

‘What happened to you?’

‘John hadn’t really thought far in advance, tried to get me to “renounce gayness”’ He used finger quotations, watching Gabriel’s eyes light in mischief, before he continued, ‘figured he could get some money from it. Roofies, pretty crappy ones. Belting was a fun one, knives, but I just waited. Figured Dean would find me, and it didn’t matter. John figured out it wasn’t doing anything, decided the easiest way to stop the gayness was to make me hate guys.’ He paused, not quite sure if he could say the words.

‘Rape?’ Gabriel was still pressed against him as he asked, and Sam nodded, before verbally agreeing. Gabriel just squeezed him tighter, before he looked back up.

‘Can I see your back?’ Sam sat up, tugging the shirt off before rolling over. Gabriel looked hesitant, worried that something may trigger.

‘You can touch, Gabe.’ Gabriel wiggled his eyebrows, effectively diffusing the tension as his fingers brushed across the plethora of scars, tracing the edge of the brand. Sam couldn’t tell what he was thinking, but when Gabriel stripped his shirt off and wriggled back against Sam, he figured it couldn’t be all bad.

 

*Dean*

It was early in the morning, and Dean was alone. He didn’t mind it, to be honest, he preferred it. He’d pushed his brother away, right when he wanted to be the closest to him. The memories of the brother he’d lost four years ago still stung, and Dean had been hoping that with all this progress, Sam would become the guy he had been. He knew that was stupid, knew his brother needed help. But Dean had failed. Failed to save his brother, failed to keep him safe. And now, he’d failed again.

The phone ringing burst the self-loathing cycle, blindly reaching for it as he tried to stem the tears that seemed to be magically falling. Presuming it was Castiel, he had no real reason to hide the fact he was crying.

‘Hello?’ He answered, voice groggy and tired, stained with emotion.

‘Dean?’ Dean froze, his brother’s voice filling the phone. He sounded just as upset as Dean was, apparently, the six days apart weren’t doing good things for either Winchester.

‘Sammy?’ It was rushed, but Dean was surprised his brother liked him enough to call. Or maybe this was the end of their brother-relationship, maybe Sam was calling to tell him he wasn’t coming back.

‘I… I’m sorry, Dean. Can I… can I come back?’ Dean found his mouth frozen, listening to his little brother start to cry, hearing the snuffling on the other side of the phone. He could see his little brother, hunched over the phone, two hands holding the phone as he tried to control the emotion. Dean didn’t understand why Sam was asking to come back, did he really think Dean was that mad?

‘I’m sorry, I can go…’

‘NO! No, Sammy, god… Don’t go.’ He didn’t beg, but right now, Dean Winchester would have done anything to keep Sam on the other end of this phone. He took a breath, trying to think of the words he wanted to say.

‘Sammy, look, I know I haven’t been the best recently, but…’

‘Stop, Dean. Stop blaming yourself for something that was my fault!’ Sam, the self-sacrificing idiot, had self-love as strong as his, apparently. Biting his tongue, he took a breath.

‘Come home, Sammy. We can discuss this when you get back.’ He would listen to what his brother had to say, understand why he had… No, Dean couldn’t think of that. It hurt, Sam was the only blood-family he had left. Well, that he wanted, anyway.

‘Thank you, Dean.’

‘No problem, little brother.’ It had been a while since he’d addressed him as such, and he could almost hear the smile stretching across Sam’s face. It made him momentarily happy, knowing his brother was okay.

‘Love you, De.’ And then the phone hung up, leaving Dean to cry some more early in the morning, wishing his brother by his side.


	12. Not the Winchester Way

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A heart to heart session between the two brothers.

Dean was waiting patiently, and when he heard the car pull up, his heart almost shattered. The house was empty, Charlie was with Anna, the two of them across at the Novak residence. Dean went to the door, watching Gabriel’s car pull into the Novak drive. When his brother stepped out, it was like his heart was being squished. Sam looked straight at him, eyes widening slightly. The Novak’s were already pouring out of the house, greeting Gabriel as he walked towards the house.

Sam didn’t take his eyes of Dean, not until Gabriel nudged his side. Dean watched his brother look down at the annoying Novak, Gabriel saying something that evidently entertained his brother. A smile tugged across Sam’s lips, the tiny Novak grinning and pressing a kiss to his brother’s cheek. Sam didn’t say anything, just started walking across hesitantly towards Dean.

Dean figured he should move, should make some effort to be the good guy. Eventually, his feet figured out to move, meeting his brother just in front of the porch. They stayed there, staring silently at each other and trying to figure out who was going to make the first move.

‘Sammy…’

‘I’m sorry, De.’ His brother muttered, hanging his head. Dean felt his heartstrings being cut, one by one, as his brother’s puppy-dog eyes made an appearance. He gestured to the house, the two of them walking away from where eyes could see them. They made it to the living room before Dean gave up, pulling his brother in for a hug. He wasn’t surprised when Sam tensed, but he was surprised when he shoved him back.

‘Don’t. You should be mad at me.’ Sam adamantly said, and Dean felt bad for how long he had allowed his brother to sit in his guilt. Dean shook his head, dismissing the chick-flic rule as he smiled at his brother.

‘Sammy, I’m not mad. There isn’t anything to be mad about.’ Sam was looking flustered, chest starting to move too fast, and this was usually the time when Sam went running. This time, however, he stayed there. His eyes filled with tears fast, and Dean waited for him to speak.

‘I don’t get it. You should be mad at me! I ruined your life, I made Dad turn against us, I acted like an idiot for four years, and then tried to kill myself. Dean, why aren’t you mad at me!’ He was practically shouting by the end, sinking down onto the floor as tears spilled down his face. Dean took a deep breath, sitting down beside him, and pulling his brother close. Sam allowed it, sobbing into his shirt as Dean held his baby brother close for the first time since the event. His eyes flicked to the bandages on his arm, thinking back to how badly he had reacted. Taking a breath, Dean stared down at his little brother.

‘Sam, listen to me. None of this, not Dad, not how our life turned out, not even the scars on your arms, are your fault. I’m sorry I didn’t see this earlier, I’m sorry that I didn’t figure out what Dad was going to do before he did it. It should be me apologising, Sammy, I was supposed to look after you. As a cop, as your big brother. I failed at doing both.’ Dean bit his tongue at the end, trying not to cry as his brother looked up at him, confusion on his face.

‘You didn’t fail, De. You did everything you could, I was too stubborn to accept help. It isn’t your fault that I have the Winchester stubbornness.’ Dean could see this going in circles for hours, the never-ending pattern of wanting to be the one to take the blame. Chuckling slightly, he wrapped an arm around his brother’s back, resting his hand in the mop of brown hair. Sam leant back against him, no longer crying, but his body shuddering slightly. It was the closest they had been since John, and Dean couldn’t help but think that although the argument had felt like the worst thing in the world, maybe it had to happen. If it didn’t, then they would never have spoken the words that both of them needed to say.

‘Agree to share the blame?’ Dean asked, not wanting to admit that he needed nothing more than his brother by his side.

’75, 25.’ Sam stated, a slight smile tugging at the corner of his lips. Glaring down at the younger, Dean pressed a kiss to his forehead.

‘Fifty-fifty.’ Sam huffed a laugh, but nodded his head slowly. Progress, Dean thought happily.

‘Love you De.’ Sam muttered, snuggling closer. Dean froze, body tensing slightly as his brother spoke. This time, although Sam couldn’t see, a single tear rolled down his cheek and hit the top of his brother’s head. Dean smiled, lip wobbling slightly.

‘I love you too, Sammy.’ He promised, keeping hold of his brother. He wasn’t sure how much time passed before his limbs became numb, the weight of the Sasquatch on top of him taking its toll.

‘Right, up the stairs for you. We have a season of Game of Thrones to watch, and I’ll bring snacks.’ Sam seemed surprised, staring at his brother as if they hadn’t done this before. Dean paused, remembering that they hadn’t done this since before Sam had gone missing. His little brother never wanted to be that close to him, and he usually accepted that. But now, Dean’s heart clenched at the thought that his brother might reject the plan.

‘Bring chocolate.’ Sam finally said, before he ran up the stairs. Dean grinned, running to the kitchen to bundle the most unhealthy things he could find in his arms. Running up the stairs was difficult, but he made his way to his brother’s room. Sam had already set up the season, sitting on the bed expectantly. Dean laughed at the bitchface his brother gave him when he handed him a single piece of popcorn, Dean hogging the rest.

Five hours in, and Dean’s eyes were threatening to give in. He looked down to his side, smiling slightly as he saw Sam’s head pressed against his chest, limbs wrapped around him and holding him tight. It was the first time he’d seen his brother so relaxed, and Dean couldn’t help but pull the blanket up over them, ignoring the mass of popcorn Sammy had spilt during one of the sex scenes, attempting to bury his head under the pillows.

‘Always were an octopus, Sammy.’ Dean said out-loud, shuffling down the bed so he could rest against the pillow. His baby brother huffed, pulling Dean closer to him. Relaxing against him, Dean shut his eyes with a smile on his face.

Neither of them woke when Charlie, Castiel and Gabriel came investigating. Upon finding the two curled up in bed with a mass of popcorn all over the room, Castiel smiled. Charlie squealed quietly, grinning happily at the sight of the two brothers. Gabriel, ever thinking ahead, pulled out his phone and snapped a photo of the elder brother and the octopus attached to him. His two companions glared at him, but Gabriel shrugged. Blackmail was useful.

With a smile, Charlie pulled the door shut, leaving the brothers in peace.


	13. Ribena

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Planning on this being the last Chapter, but I'm open to writing more if people want!

Dean was at the Novak household, sitting with Castiel in the window seat. It was three weeks since Sam had come home, and Dean could finally say that he was happy. John was back in prison, Bobby had forgiven him, Sam had forgiven him, and he had his boyfriend by his side. Speaking of, Dean glanced to Castiel, who was lying in his lap with a book. The other Novaks were in the main room, Lucifer and Michael sprawled out on the couch playing on the Xbox, Charlie was curled up on the loveseat with Anna, and the other two Novaks were in their rooms. Chuck was seated at the breakfast table with Bobby, who had stopped by this morning.

The only Novak who wasn’t here was Gabriel, who Dean could keep an eye on from his window perch. The small Novak was currently outside his home, annoying Sam, who was attempting to garden. Dean didn’t know if he entirely approved of the relationship, it seemed that Gabriel was pushing something that Sam was still unsure about, but he seemed happy, so Dean left him.

‘Stop thinking so loudly.’ Castiel grumbled, turning the page and continuing to read. Dean scoffed, adjusting so he could keep an eye on his brother.

‘I wasn’t.’ He lied, knowing that if he said he was, his boyfriend would start the third inquisition, which he could do without. Castiel rolled his eyes, putting the book down.

‘You frown when you think, so stop. It’s unbecoming.’ Dean knew Castiel was joking by the smile tugging at his lips, but it didn’t stop him from glaring. He loved Cas, he really did, but his boyfriend could be annoying.

‘Would you prefer a stupid boyfriend?’ He quipped, hearing Bobby say something like “he already has one”, to which he glared at the Sheriff. Bobby grinned, before Charlie rolled off the chair, squeaking. Dean stared at her, watching her come across to the window. Dean followed her gaze, only to see a very annoyed Sam lying on his stomach on the grass, Gabriel covered in mud and staring at the flower-patch that he had evidently just ruined.

Dean felt like he really needed to stop spying on his brother, but it really was a good form on entertainment, so he would stop later. And anyway, when everyone in the room barrelled across to also watch, they could hardly blame him for starting it. Castiel rolled his eyes again, so hard that Dean was actually concerned that they would eventually roll out, and took Dean’s hand.

‘Gabriel is an idiot.’ He stated, watching the Novak try and wipe down the soil off his shirt.

‘At least we can agree on that.’ Dean remarked, a smirk on his lips.

 

*Gabriel*

In his defence, he really was trying to plant flowers. It wasn’t his fault that he’d face planted the flower bed, then in an attempt to get up, had fallen straight into Sam, who had been planting a shrub. When all was said and done, he realised it might be his fault.

‘Sammich, I’m sorry.’ He commented, attempting to wipe mud of his shirt. His boyfriend was lying on the floor, face in the grass, groaning about how he was going to tie Gabriel to a tree and leave him there. Kinky.

‘Look, I’ll help you fix it!’ Gabriel reached for the trowel, only to hear Sam swear colourfully, snatching it back. His face showed annoyance, his eyes showed fondness. Good, he hadn’t annoyed him too badly.

‘Sit on the porch and stay.’ Sam stated, amusement on his face as Gabriel did as he was told. Unfortunately, the Novak was never very good at sitting still for long, and started becoming agitated. It wasn’t his fault, he just needed things happening in life. And this was boring.

‘Can I have my drink?’ Sam asked, finished the plant and removing his gloves. He was looking pretty handsome today, the Moose was wearing a short-sleeve shirt, sweatpants, and his hair was in a tousled mess. Gabriel grabbed the glass, walking across to hand it to him.

‘What do you think?’ Sam asked, looking down at the flowerbed. Truth be told, Gabriel really didn’t have an interest in it, but he figured that was the wrong answer.

‘It’s nice.’ He stated, stealing back the drink and planning mischief. Sam gave him a bitchface, very Sam like, and turned to put stuff away. Gabriel continued to pester him, prodding and poking, singing off-tune, until Sam finally turned.

‘You cannot deal without attention, can you?’ Sam asked, and Gabriel went to speak, before remembering he had a mouthful of drink, and ended up dousing his boyfriend in sticky Ribena. To make it worse, Gabriel then decided he was already going to die, so he might as well go full pelt.

‘Ribena?’ He questioned, tipping the rest over his Moose. Sam was just staring at him, evidently close to snapping, and Gabriel wasn’t entirely sure why he felt the need to keep poking the bear. Or in this case, the Moose. Sam sighed, gripping the hem of the shirt and pulling it over his head, leaving his very handsome self shirtless. Sam wiped down the Ribena, before stalking towards Gabriel, who quickly backed up to the Porch.

One hand slammed on top of his head, the other to the side of his body, effectively caging Gabriel in. Sexy, he thought, wondering if it was wrong to be aroused by an angry Samsquatch.

‘Are you trying to wind me up?’ He growled, head dangerously close, and Gabriel shook his head slowly, admiring the way his muscles moved as he tensed.

‘Such a Dominant, Sam.’ He joked, regretting it when Sam smirked, face dropping even closer to his head.

‘Outside the bedroom, yeah. Inside?’ Gabriel shuddered at the tone, definitely hard in these now uncomfortable jeans, biting his tongue. ‘I prefer to be submissive.’ Gabriel looked up, accepting the challenge of whatever Sam was offering, and let his voice drop.

‘Then show me.’ He said, no, ordered. Sam’s pupils were dilating, his hands gripping Gabriel’s waist and hoisting him up. Gabriel had no issues wrapping his thighs around his boyfriend, grinning when he was carried back into the house, straight up the stairs. Ah, the joys of a muscular man.

‘Take me to bed, Sammich.’


	14. Epilogue 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An Epilogue to the story, but I have a feeling I may have to write more! :)

Eight Months Later

Groaning lazily, Sam rolled across to check the time. Crap, 10am. Definitely late for work, he thought miserably, the remembered that today was his day off. Well, considering he only worked three days a week, most days were days off. He rolled back, staring at the empty sheets besides him. The first time he had woken without Gabriel by his side after they became “official”, Sam had freaked. Now, he tilted his head slightly, trying to see if he could smell bacon. It was usually a good bet.

Grabbing jeans, he shoved them on, buckling as he walked. He left the shirt, heading downstairs in search of his boyfriend. Sure enough, the kitchen smelt of bacon, and Sam grinned happily. A plate full on the side, he tucked into it happily, before noticing the paper note by the side. Handwritten, Gabriel’s beautiful script, and Sam grinned.

_Where you first met me._

Sam grabbed a shirt from the back of the couch, leaving the apartment and heading down the street. Dean was outside the house when he arrived, working on Baby, his head rising when he saw Sam.

‘Dude, whatever your Imp is up to, it’s freaky.’ Dean stated, and Sam rolled his eyes. He looked to the Porch, finding another card stuck to it. Ignoring his brother in favour of the card, he strode across to pick it up.

_Person you saved._

Rolling his eyes, knowing Gabriel did love being dramatic, he strode across to the Novak house. Knocking, he was amused when Castiel answered, his gaze flicking across the road to Dean. The two of them were quite cute, although they’d had a break last month, but had worked through it. Sam showed the note to Castiel, watching how his eyes widened in shock, then Sam realised Cas knew what Gabriel was doing.

Michael wasn’t difficult to find, sitting on the couch with Lucifer, looking up as Sam walked in. He laughed at Sam’s expression, holding out a third card.

‘Trust me, I have no idea.’ Michael stated, and Sam took it from his hands with a grin.

‘He has a need for drama.’ Sam stated, flicking the card over to read what it said.

_First shop we went to together._

‘I am going to need a big lunch with all this walking.’ He muttered, leaving the Novaks to laugh as he walked to the Candy store, technically cheating, because it was Gabriel’s store. Pinned to the door was another card, how unsurprising, but he did enjoy the sweet that was also taped. Sucking on the strawberry invention, he looked at the card.

_First place where I said I love you._

That was an easy one, and he walked to the Park quickly. That had been four months ago, almost out of the blue, and Sam had been so surprised that he had started to hyperventilate. Gabriel, rushing to his aid, had tripped and fallen into the lake. It was certainly a good story. He went to the tree, picking the card off it and wondering how Gabriel got all this done on his tiny little legs. Snorting, he stared at the writing.

_Our first role-play?_

That was more like Gabriel, and he was glad that no child had found that taped to a tree. Walking back to the apartment that he shared with Gabriel, he walked into the main room. On the table sat a card, a box, and his car-keys. Groaning, he flipped the card over.

_Had fun running around? Claim your prize! Meet me at our getaway._

Sam showered, got properly dressed, then returned to the main room. He chuckled, opening the box and finding a framed photo of the two of them, Gabriel dressed in a bumble-bee onesie that had been a gift from Cas, Sam wearing his Moose version. The two of them were outside of Dean and Charlie’s house, the Bee flopped over Sam’s arms. It had been a funny day, Christmas, with Dean and Charlie having onesie’s of their own.

The drive to the apartment took a while. Sam hadn’t sold it, not even when they moved into a new one. Pulling into the underground parking lot, he headed up to his apartment. Unlocking the door, the first thing he noticed was the dining table, set out ready for a meal. Gabriel turned, standing in the kitchen wearing tight jeans and a button-up shirt. He rarely dressed formally, so instantly Sam was nervous.

‘Hey, Sammich.’ He stated, Sam walking across to kiss him.

‘All this for dinner?’ He asked, and Gabriel beamed. Sam had to admit, it was nice. Crab for starters, a pasta dish for main. He tucked into his food, listening to Gabriel prattle on about stories from the candy-shop. He talked about the kids, the ones he had grown to adore, and Sam knew that was something that would eventually come up. Sam felt nervous now about the papers in his back pocket, wondering if he should have left that home.

‘Samalam, you look ready to burst.’ Gabriel commented, and his boyfriend was right. Maybe he should just keep it a secret?

‘I’m fine, we can talk after lunch. Nothing bad, I promise.’ He smiled lovingly, and noticed fear flash across his boyfriend’s face, before Gabriel walked to the kitchen. When he returned, it was with dessert. A sundae, which they both shared, Gabriel having great fun smearing it all over Sam’s face. Sam couldn’t get mad, not with the look of happiness on Gabriel’s face, and so he threw a cherry at him. When his spoon hit something, he looked down.

A box. Who put a box in ice-cream? He looked to Gabriel, wondering what the hell his boyfriend was thinking, then licked his fingers clean. Gabriel was staring at him, eyes wide as he waited.

‘Open it, Sam.’ Gabriel quietly said, and Sam did, staring.

He had to admit, it took him a couple of seconds to figure it out. He stared at the gold ring, then to Gabriel’s face, then back again. Then, very slowly, it dawned on him. His heart literally stopped, chest tightening as he stared at the ring. Gabriel… really wanted him?

‘Tell me this isn’t a joke.’ Sam muttered, fingers reaching for the ring, then snatching them away like they’d been burnt. He looked to Gabriel, who had tears in his eyes, a smile on his face. Sam didn’t even realise he was crying until his boyfriend nodded, and Sam launched himself forwards. The table long forgotten, he scooped his boyfriend up and dropped him to the couch, keeping the ring between them.

‘Yes. Yes. Definitely Yes.’ He mumbled, pressing kisses to Gabriel’s face, who giggled like a schoolgirl and took the ring from the box, sliding it onto his finger. Sam stared at it, then at Gabriel, who slid onto his lap and kissed him. When fingers carded through his hair, he pulled back.

‘Too bare.’ He muttered, staring at Gabriel’s fingers, and scooping him up. His boyfriend, no, fiancé, shrieked. The trip to the bedroom was short, and he sat Gabriel down on the edge and turned to the draw that he kept locked. The key was attached to his keychain, unlocking the draw and pulling out the box.

‘Sam…’ Gabriel knew what it was, of course. He’d asked what was in the drawer before, but Sam shook his head, taking Gabriel’s hand and sliding the ring on. Of course, with Gabriel’s fingers being tiny, the ring fit perfectly.

‘Damn, really going to have to upstage you for wedding rings.’ He muttered, staring at the ring with awe. Sam beamed, pressing a kiss to his nose. Gabriel squawked, rather like a bird, and tugged Sam closer by the loops of his belt. His hands reached round, pausing when they felt the paper in his pocket. Sam froze as Gabriel looked at it, then to him, a smile on his face.

‘Yes.’ Gabriel stated simply, and Sam dropped down onto the bed on top of him, Gabriel laughing happily as he wrapped his legs around him.


End file.
